Vaccine News and Research

Latest Vaccine News and Research

Top cancer research centers to establish new biotechnology company focused on cancer immunotherapy

The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Fred Hutch) and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), along with pediatric partner Seattle Children's Research Institute, have joined forces to launch Juno Therapeutics Inc., a new biotechnology company focused on bringing forward novel immunotherapies for cancer.

4 Dec 2013

Researchers predict seasonal influenza outbreaks in 108 cities across the U.S.

Scientists were able to reliably predict the timing of the 2012-2013 influenza season up to nine weeks in advance of its peak. The first large-scale demonstration of the flu forecasting system by scientists at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health was carried out in 108 cities across the United States.

4 Dec 2013

Microneedle technique may provide a painless way to deliver drugs, vaccines

Microneedles on a sticking-plaster-like patch may be the painless and safe way doctors will test for drugs and some infections in the future, thanks to work supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).

3 Dec 2013

Research proves effectiveness of vaccine against leishmaniasis

The disease is considered endemic in the south states of Mexico. A research executed in the Autonomous University of Yucatan (UADY) has successfully proved, in test animals, the effectiveness of a vaccine that immunizes the organism against leishmaniasis, an ailment transmitted through insects very similar to mosquitos and mainly presents symptoms in the skin, liver or spleen.

3 Dec 2013

Researchers discover why parasite that causes deadliest form of malaria only infects humans

Researchers have discovered why the parasite that causes the deadliest form of malaria only infects humans.

3 Dec 2013

Soligenix initiates orBec Phase 2 study for GI manifestations of chronic GVHD

Soligenix, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing products to treat serious inflammatory diseases where there remains an unmet medical need, as well as developing several biodefense vaccines and therapeutics, announced today that it has initiated a Phase 2, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study evaluating orBec (oral beclomethasone 17,21-dipropionate or BDP) as a treatment for the gastrointestinal manifestations of chronic Graft-versus-Host disease.

2 Dec 2013

Nanosponge vaccine blocks adverse effects of alpha-haemolysin toxin from MRSA

Nanosponges that soak up a dangerous pore-forming toxin produced by MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) could serve as a safe and effective vaccine against this toxin. This "nanosponge vaccine" enabled the immune systems of mice to block the adverse effects of the alpha-haemolysin toxin from MRSA-both within the bloodstream and on the skin. Nanoengineers from the University of California, San Diego described the safety and efficacy of this nanosponge vaccine in the December 1 issue of Nature Nanotechnology.

2 Dec 2013

InnaVirVax starts VAC-3S Phase 2 clinical trial for treatment of HIV-1 infection

InnaVirVax SA today announced the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical trial assessing the therapeutic properties of the VAC-3S vaccine when combined with standard antiretroviral therapy in the course of HIV-1 infection.

1 Dec 2013

Ascend, 3M partner to develop and evaluate novel immunotherapy treatments for cancer

Ascend Biopharmaceuticals today announces that is has entered into an agreement with 3M Drug Delivery Systems to evaluate 3M’s Toll-Like Receptor 7/8 (TLR7/8) agonist 3M-051 in combination with Ascend’s proprietary cancer vaccine technology. The collaboration will support the creation and preclinical assessment of novel immunotherapy treatments to be potentially used for a number of different solid tumor types.

29 Nov 2013

Study brings effective hepatitis C cure closer to reality

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have determined the most detailed picture yet of a crucial part of the hepatitis C virus, which the virus uses to infect liver cells. The new data reveal unexpected structural features of this protein and should greatly speed efforts to make an effective hepatitis C vaccine.

29 Nov 2013

Scientists design small synthetic molecules capable of blocking AIDS virus replication

A multidisciplinary team of scientists from Spanish universities and research centres, among which is the University of Valencia, has managed to design small synthetic molecules capable of joining to the genetic material of the AIDS virus and blocking its replication.

28 Nov 2013

New NIH guidelines for managing opportunistic infections in children with HIV

Sharon Nachman, MD, a pediatric HIV and infectious diseases specialist at Stony Brook Children's Hospital, is a co-author of new National Institutes of Health (NIH)-issued guidelines for the prevention, treatment and management of opportunistic infections in HIV-exposed and HIV-infected children. The 2013 guidelines shed light on the most effective way to treat dangerous and deadly infections such as pneumonia or tuberculosis that can strike immunosuppressed pediatric HIV patients.

27 Nov 2013

More than three-quarters of parents are willing to have their children participate in research

To improve healthcare for children, medical research that involves kids is a must. Yet, only five percent of parents say their children have ever participated in any type of medical research, according to a new University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health.

27 Nov 2013

European research project examines toxicity factor to fight AIDS

December 1st is the annual World AIDS Day, a perfect opportunity to look at how medical research is progressing to fight the disease.

27 Nov 2013

Typhoon survivors in Tacloban vaccinated against measles and polio

Children in Tacloban – the city hit hardest by Typhoon Haiyan – were vaccinated against measles and polio in the first phase of a mass campaign by the Government of the Philippines with support from UNICEF, the World Health Organization, and other partners. They also received Vitamin A supplements to help improve their immunity against infections.

27 Nov 2013

Health insurance coverage does not increase risky behavior

People with health insurance are more likely to use preventive services such as flu shots and health screenings to reduce their risk of serious illness, but they are no more likely than people without health insurance to engage in risky health behaviors such as smoking or gaining weight, researchers at UC Davis and University of Rochester have found.

27 Nov 2013

UMass Medical School licenses "anti-gal" technology to Agalimmune

The University of Massachusetts Medical School has licensed "anti-gal" technology developed by Professor of Surgery and Medicine Uri Galili, PhD, to newly formed biopharmaceutical company Agalimmune Ltd. for the purpose of developing innovative immunotherapies for the treatment of solid tumor cancers. Agalimmune is supported by an investment group comprising Loxbridge Research LLP and Animatrix Capital LLP and is based in London and California.

27 Nov 2013

EU-funded project develops new type of vaccine to tackle HIV virus infection

AIDS research has attempted many strategies to tackle the HIV virus infection. Now, a new type of vaccine developed within an EU-funded project, called EuroNeut-41, is based on one of the envelope proteins of the HIV virus, called the gp41 protein. What makes it interesting it that it is directly responsible for the fusion of the HIV virus into human cells. By integrating the gp41 protein into the vaccine, researchers try to trigger the production of antibodies that would block the entrance of HIV into human cells

27 Nov 2013

HPV vaccine coverage among teens still remains low than other recommended vaccinations

Barriers to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among adolescents in the U.S. range from financial concerns and parental attitudes to social influences and concerns about the vaccination's effect on sexual behavior, according to a review of the available medical literature published by JAMA Pediatrics, a JAMA Network publication.

26 Nov 2013

HIV patients face higher risk of virologic failure than previously thought

People with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) run a higher risk of virologic failure than previously thought, even when their number of RNA copies of the retrovirus per millilitre of blood is slightly above the detection threshold, according to a study by Claudie Laprise at the University of Montreal's Department of Social and Preventative Medicine.

26 Nov 2013